Disposable syringe

ABSTRACT

A syringe contains a premeasured amount of medication in a hermetically sealed syringe which has a stiletto inserted in the needle and retained in the cap of the syringe, thereby being removed from the needle as the cap is removed.

United States Patent [56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 3/1945Watson et [72] Inventor Kathryn C.Scha1ler 20301 Lorne St., Canoga Park,Calif. 91306 [2]] Appl. No. 741,426

2,668,534 2/1954 Barradas et a1. 2,744,527 5/1956 Barrett et a1. PrimaryExaminerWamer H. Cam AnomeyJohn .1. Posta, Jr.

[22] Filed July 1,1968 [45] Patented Feb. 2, 1971 [54] DISPOSABLESYRINGE 6 Claims, 3 Drawing Figs. 52]

ABSTRACT: A syringe contains a premeasured amount of medication in ahermetically sealed syringe which has a stiletto inserted in the needleand retained in the cap of the syringe, thereby being removed from theneedle as the cap is removed 511 lnt.C1................ 50 Field ofPATENTEU FEB 2 Ian INVENTOR. KATHRYN 0. SCHALLER K v v /1 ATTORNEYFIG.-l

' DISPOSABLE SYRINGE BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION The invention isdirected to the art of hypodermic syringes and more particularly relatesto a single-use disposable hypodermic syringe.

The prior art relating to the invention generally provides disposablesyringes which are complex in both construction and mode of operation,and which furthermore are difflcult to mass-produce in large quantities.Prior art syringes which provide a stiletto for insertion into theneedle are generally designed to have the stiletto inserted into theneedle from the pointed end. Inasmuch as the needle ordinarily has aquite small opening, it becomes readily apparent that the insertion ofthe stiletto in this manner requires the use of either time consuminghand labor or high-precision manufacturing equipment. Applicantsinvention enables the manufacture of such syringes without the use ofsuch high-precision equipment, by providing for insertion of thestiletto into the end opposite the pointed end, using an expanded borearea in the base portion of the syringe as a guide. This guide enablesthe use of less than precision equipment in the manufacture and assemblyof applicant's syringe, and lends itself to the use of highly automated,mass-production techniques.

Prior art disposable syringes also generally provide a structure madefrom a plurality of components which must be assembled to form acomplete structure. For example, the needle of the syringe is generallyseparatefrom the base member and must be attached thereto by suitablefastening means. Applicants invention dispenses with the need for suchassembly steps by providing a single unitary structure for said needleand base member, thereby again enabling ease of manufacture.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the invention is to provide anovel hypodermic syringe.

Another object of the invention is to provide a single-use disposablehypodermic syringe.

A further object of the invention is to provide a single-use disposablehypodermic syringe which is fully sealed, with the needle and injectablematerial being maintained in a sterile condition at all times. I

A still further object of the invention is to provide a sealedsingle-use disposable syringe which can be stored for long periods oftime and can be easily shipped and handled, even relatively roughly,without in anyway destroying the immediate usefulness and efficacy ofthe single-use disposable syringe when it is desired to be put into use.

Yet another object of the invention is to provide a single-usedisposable hypodermic syringe which has a sanitary construction with astiletto, attached to the cap, and adapted to be inserted into theneedle to maintain the syringe into a sterile condition.

Another object of the invention is to provide a syringe of the characterreferred to herein which is of extremely simple and inexpensiveconstruction and suitable for fabrication by mass production techniquesat extremely low cost per item, both as to initial tooling and as to theactual production cost per item, and thereby being conducive towidespread production and distribution, and use of the invention for thepurposes outlined herein.

The invention generally comprises a syringe having a needle and basemember, a capping member, a stiletto attached to the capping member andadapted to be inserted in the needle and a collapsible container forfluid attached to the base member. The capping member has a recess atits top adapted to receive the stiletto. The cap is snapped in placeover the needle and into a circumferential recess on the base member.The needle and base member are formed as an integral, unitary structure.The syringe assembly is designed to be assembled under sterileconditions. The container is initially open at one end thereof andattached to the underside of the base member at the other end thereof.The base member has an expanded bore area within about the base portionof the needle opening. The stiletto is then inserted into the containerthrough the base member, through the needle, and into the recess formedat the top of the cap. The container for the liquid and the cappingmember are formed from a heat deformable material, such as elastomericplastic, capable of being heat sealed. After the insertion of thestiletto, the container is filled with the injectable liquid, with theopen end thereof then. being heat sealed into a closed position. Therecess of the capping member with the stiletto extended therein islikewise heat sealed in a manner to fasten the stiletto to the cappingmember. The syringe is now in a readily useable state. Removal of thecapping member will result in the simultaneous removal of the stilettofrom the needle, thereby presenting a sterile needle ready for itsintended use.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING along lines 3-3 of FIG. 2.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT The disposable syringe shown inFIG. I essentially consists of four components; a member 1, acollapsible fluid container 2, a stiletto 3, and a cap 4. Member 1 canbe made from any suitable rigid material, which is preferably heatresistant. The member I is of unitary construction and has a needlelikeportion 5 and an enlarged base portion 6. A longitudinal bore 7 of smalldiameter extends through the base portion 6 and needlelike portion 5 ofmember 1. The bore 7 is of a substantially constant diameter exceptingat the terminus 8 of the base portion 6 wherein it rapidly increases indiameter to form an expanded bore area within said base portion 6.

Container 2 isboth hollow and collapsible, and is made from anysuitable, heat-sealable, flexible material which may be heat resistant,such as an elastomeric plastic material. The container is attached tothe lower portion of member I at 10 by suitable fastener means such asan adhesive. Container 2 has an opening 9 on the upper surface thereofwhich is in alignment with the base 7 and expanded bore area 8 in thebase .portion 6 of member 1, to enable the free flow of the injectablematerial from the container through member 1. The lower end 11 ofcontainer 2 is open in its preassembly assembly, but after loading withthe injectable material, is adapted to be hermetically sealed bysuitable closure means, such as being folded over upon itself and heatsealed as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3.

Stiletto 3 is a solid rod of rigid material, preferably of aheatdeformable plastic. Stiletto 3 has a cross-sectional diameter whichis substantially the same as the diameter of bore 7 and is of a lengthequal to at least the distance between the top of cap 4 and the bottomof base portion 6 of member 1 when the cap is in place. Cap 4 has alongitudinally extending portion 1 adapted to completely cover themember 1 and includes suitable fastening means for maintaining the capin place, such as the circumferentially extending raised portion 12 onthe inner lip surface of cap 4 which is adapted to be snapped into placein the circumferentially extending recess 13 extending about the outerlower surface of base portion 6. Cap 4 further has a recess 14 on itstop portion adapted to receive the stiletto 3. Cap 4 is made from thesame heat-defonnable material as the stiletto 3. a

The method of fabrication of the syringe is as follows. Container 2 inits open, unfilled position is attached to the preformed member I at 10by suitable adhesive means, the opening 9 of container 2 being inalignment with bore 7 in member I. In this position the container 2 isopen and does not hold the injectable material.

Cap 14 is now snapped into place on member I by locating the raisedportion 12 thereof in recess 13 of member 1. At this point, thesubassembly of member 1. container 2 and cap 4, along with the stiletto3 are sterilized by suitable, well-known sterilizing means, such as heattreatment, antiseptic washing, etc. From this point forward, theassembly of the syringes is performed under sterile conditions. Thestiletto 3 is then inserted through the container 2 and its opening 9into the bore 7 integral member 1, and into the recess 14 of cap 4,thereby plugging the bore 7.

The assembly is then turned upside down and the container 2 is filledwith a premeasured dose of the injectable fluid IS. The container 2 isthen hermetically sealed, as for example, by

folding over the end 1 l of container 2 and heat sealing same as shownat 16 in FIG. 3. The upper end of the stiletto which is nested in recess14 is now joined to the cap 4, as for example,

It is readily apparent that the construction of the syringe and itsmethod of assembly described hereinabove lends itself very well toautomation by mass-production techniques. Heretofore, disposablesyringes with stiletto inserted in the needle always provided forinsertion of the stiletto into the needle from above. The top of theneedle had to have a small opening of the bore because this was pointwhich pierced a patients skin and entered his body. Because the openingin the needle was so small (necessarily), it made the insertion of astiletto into the opening rather difficult and time consuming. In anyattempt to automate the fabrication of the syringes, one would have hadto have very precise tooling and machines, which would have had to holdexceedingly small tolerances.

Applicants invention dispenses with the need for such close toleranceautomated machinery and assembly procedures by virtue of the fact thatthe stiletto is inserted from below through an expanded bore area in thebase member which serves as the locating guide.

It should be noted that the cap 4 has several functions, includingkeeping the needle in a sterile condition, preventing deformation of theneedle, and carrying the stiletto which is inserted in the needle.

It should be understood that the FIGS. and the specific descriptionthereof set forth in this application are for the purpose ofillustrating the present invention and are not to be construed aslimiting the present invention to the precise and detailed specificstructure shown in the FIGS. and specifically described hereinbefore.Rather, the real invention is intended to include substantiallyequivalent constructions embodying the basic teachings and inventiveconcept of the present invention.

I claim:

1. A single use disposable syringe comprising an integral, needlelikemember having an enlarged base portion and an elongated needle portion;

said needle like member having a bore therein extending through theentire length of said base portion and said needle portion;

said bore having a substantially constant cross-sectional diameterextending along the entire length of said needle portion and along onlya portion of the length of the base portion;

said bore flaring out at its terminus in the base portion to form arounded, expanded recess;

a collapsible container attached to said base portion and having a firstopening and a second opening whereby a passage is created allowing freecommunication between the outside of the container and the concaverecess in the base portion;

a cap covering said needlelike member and attached to the base portion;

a stiletto attached to said cap and located within said bore, whereinthe said stiletto having a cross-sectional diameter substantiallyequivalent to the cross-sectional diameter of said bore as it extendsalong the length of said needle portion; and

wherein said rounded, expanded recess is adapted to receive and guidethe stiletto into the needle portion.

2, A syringe as set forth in claim 1 wherein said container is filledwith an injectable fluid.

3. A syringe as set forth in claim 2 wherein said stiletto is attachedto the cap by a heat sealing method.

4. A method for assembling a disposable syringe having a hollow needlewith a base portion, a collapsible container of injectable fluid, aclosure cap and a stiletto adapted to plug the opening comprising:

attaching the collapsible container to the base portion;

releasingly attaching the closure cap to the base portion;

inserting the stiletto first through the container, then through thebase portion, and then through the needle; fastening the stiletto to theclosure cap;

filling the container with an injectable liquid; and

sealing said container.

5. The method as set forth in claim 4 wherein the stiletto is fastenedto the cap by a heat sealing means.

A 6. The method as set forth in claim 5 wherein the container is' sealedby heat sealing means.

1. A single use disposable syringe comprising an integral, needlelikemember having an enlarged base portion and an elongated needle portion;said needle like member having a bore therein extending through theentire length of said base portion and said needle portion; said borehaving a substantially constant cross-sectional diameter extending alongthe entire length of saId needle portion and along only a portion of thelength of the base portion; said bore flaring out at its terminus in thebase portion to form a rounded, expanded recess; a collapsible containerattached to said base portion and having a first opening and a secondopening whereby a passage is created allowing free communication betweenthe outside of the container and the concave recess in the base portion;a cap covering said needlelike member and attached to the base portion;a stiletto attached to said cap and located within said bore, whereinthe said stiletto having a cross-sectional diameter substantiallyequivalent to the cross-sectional diameter of said bore as it extendsalong the length of said needle portion; and wherein said rounded,expanded recess is adapted to receive and guide the stiletto into theneedle portion.
 2. A syringe as set forth in claim 1 wherein saidcontainer is filled with an injectable fluid.
 3. A syringe as set forthin claim 2 wherein said stiletto is attached to the cap by a heatsealing method.
 4. A method for assembling a disposable syringe having ahollow needle with a base portion, a collapsible container of injectablefluid, a closure cap and a stiletto adapted to plug the openingcomprising: attaching the collapsible container to the base portion;releasingly attaching the closure cap to the base portion; inserting thestiletto first through the container, then through the base portion, andthen through the needle; fastening the stiletto to the closure cap;filling the container with an injectable liquid; and sealing saidcontainer.
 5. The method as set forth in claim 4 wherein the stiletto isfastened to the cap by a heat sealing means.
 6. The method as set forthin claim 5 wherein the container is sealed by heat sealing means.